Beginnings
by pusa.is.me
Summary: She is Tenten, just Tenten, and he is a Hyuuga, the Neji Hyuuga, and there isn't much she can do about it. NejiTen, Team Gai
1. Keep It Quiet

**Title: Keep It Quiet**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji, mention of Lee**

**Summary: She is Tenten, just Tenten, and he is a Hyuuga, _the_ Neji Hyuuga, and there isn't much she can do about it.**

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><p><strong>Keep It Quiet<strong>

She knows that it is wrong.

For several reasons, actually.

One, she is a kunoichi. Her first and foremost devotion should be to the village she had sworn to protect, her fidelity to the oath she made after graduating from the Academy. It is her lifelong dream—to be a great kunoichi just like her idol Tsunade-sama, to uphold the laws of Konoha and put nothing above her vow to serve the village until her last dying breath. Any distraction could cost the success of her mission, or worse, her life.

Second, she is a nobody. Nobody in the sense that she didn't have any bloodline limit, no powerful clan or relative she could be proud of. She is just an ordinary girl, orphaned at an early age, struggling to leave a mark in the world, to not dissolve into nothingness after she dies. She couldn't, _shouldn't_, dare hope, dream, that she could be somebody else, or worse, that _someone_ important, would see her as somebody she is not.

Third, she is a member of Team Gai. And although there are no written codes or rules forbidding relationships to blossom inside a four-man cell, she knows it is still wrong, because they are practically a _family_, and nothing would ruin their chemistry more than the admittance that she fell, hard, for one of her teammates.

She could list countless reasons more, and it wouldn't matter. In the end, the verdict would be the same: she cannot, _must not_, fall in love with Neji Hyuuga.

So she forces herself not to.

Because he is always there, just a faint whisper away, but they are still a world apart.

Because they are two halves of two different wholes, and there is no way to make them fit, not even if she tries to make her edges rougher, just so she can match the jagged outlines of his heart.

Because breathing without him makes her body grow cold, but it is still better than not breathing at all.

Because she is Tenten, just Tenten, and he is a Hyuuga, _the_ Neji Hyuuga, and it will always be that way, and there isn't really much she can do about it.

Still, there are rare times when he would smile her way, very faintly, so small that no one save her would have noticed; or he would nod at her when she perfects a new technique, as if silently congratulating her for her success; or he would knit his eyebrows together for just a fraction of a millimeter, when she is hurt during training or a mission or from an overly enthusiastic Lee-bear hug—and her heart would just soar.

And she finds herself smiling at nothing in particular, and she thinks that maybe, just maybe, this is enough.

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><p><em>I've had this idea of doing a one-shot collection of NejiTen drabbles, moments and what-nots for quite a while now, but never really acted on it. I've finally gotten around to it now. Some will be bittersweet, others just bitter, but I promise to try and insert humor in them if I can. I hope this first shot passes the critique of the countless NejiTen fans out there in the wild, uh, I mean, in the world.<em>

**_062812 update:_**

_Revised a bit. Nothing too major. Oh, the lyrics are gone though._


	2. Go Do

**Title: Go Do**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji, Lee**

**Summary: "Don't get me wrong. Not for one moment do I think you're weak."**

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><p><strong>Go Do<strong>

The silence was deafening.

It wasn't Neji's characteristic quiet that made her uneasy. It was the lack of shouts of "Springtime of Youth!" from the usual bouncing-up-the-walls Lee.

For the first time in a long, long while, _no_, for as long as she could remember, she has never seen her spandex-loving teammate as angry as he was at that very moment.

"Lee . . ." she whispered softly, but her voice came out a croak, cracked with unshed tears.

"Take it back," Konoha's Beautiful Green Wild Beast _hissed._

Neji continued to stare blankly at his teammate, eyes emotionless as ever.

"Lee, just let it go," Tenten tried again, but her plea fell on deaf ears.

"Take back what you said," Lee repeated, his voice firmer, angrier.

Neji answered with an indifferent silence.

Tenten took a step forward and placed a hand on Lee's shoulder, hesitantly. "Lee . . ."

"I'm going to ask you one last time," the taijutsu expert said. "What you said about Tenten. Take it back."

"No." Neji's voice was his characteristic monotone, and Tenten was surprised that he actually answered. "I will not take back what I said because it's the truth. Tenten will fail the mission if she accepts it."

Tenten's eyes clouded with something wet and salty, she never noticed the blur of green disappear beside her until it was too late. Before she could even cry "Stop!", Lee was already hurtling toward Neji, and the green blur became a blur of white and green, their movements so fast that even Tenten's trained eye had a hard time following their every move.

Next thing she knew, she was catching Lee as he tumbled backward, all his chakra points sealed. Neji stood a few feet away, still posed for another Gentle Fist if he deemed it necessary to use it one more time.

Tenten glared at him with as much venom as she could muster. Neji merely glared back.

"That the best you can do?" she whispered, suddenly feeling lightheaded, spent.

"No." At least he had the decency to answer before turning away. Tenten closed her eyes, but she refused to let the tears fall. She'd be damned if she let Neji see her cry.

"Don't get me wrong," she heard him speak, and when she opened her eyes, she was surprised that he hasn't left yet. "Not for one moment do I think you're weak." Tenten's chest shuddered involuntarily, as a tiny flicker of hope rose from the ashes of her broken heart.

"Then why?" she managed to ask, her voice shaky.

"Because I _know _the enemies are stronger."

The next second, Neji became just another blur of white before disappearing completely. Tenten wasn't sure if it was because of his speed, or because of the tears that finally fell.

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><p><strong>It's weird, I know. Especially since the song "Go Do" by Jonsi is such a happy, positive song. Sigh.<strong>

**I believe that Lee has infinite faith in Tenten's abilities. I can see him being angry if someone looks down on her, instead of being whiny. The scene with Temari during the Chunnin exams comes to mind. But I also believe that Neji, in his own little way, believes in Tenten. It's just that he's more, well, realistic about things. Because let's face it: no matter how great a weapons' mistress Tenten is, there will always be ninjas better than her. Neji just has more foresight when it comes to these kinds of things. I think.**

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows.**


	3. 7 Years

**Title: 7 Years**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji, Lee, Kiba**

**Summary: ****"You look . . . nice."**

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><p><strong>7 Years<strong>

For the first time in seven years, Tenten found herself in the middle of a large hall, clad in a beautiful cocktail dress, so unlike her usual kunoichi attire.

She could barely remember the last time she had been to a _real _party. The last time she had worn anything similar to a dress, she was a tiny speck of a ten-year-old in some random kid's birthday bash. Afterward, she had been too busy in the Academy, and then later training and going out on missions, that she never really found the time to unwind. Sure, there were several _rare_ occasions when she would go out for a little bonding time with other kunoichi, but never to a grand celebration like the one she was in at the moment. She was almost grateful that Lee had forced her and Neji to attend a random party thrown by the Fire daimyo, all because he wanted to show off his _youthful moves to Sakura-san!_

_Speaking of Neji_, she thought as she looked around, trying to find her teammate. He had promised to go, but she hadn't seen him anywhere since she had arrived an hour past. Sighing at her friend's inability to be sociable or to keep a promise, Tenten tried her best to push the Hyuuga out of her mind and focus on the situation at hand.

_Just this night, _she whispered to herself, fingers nervously clutching the hem of her above-the-knee skirt, highlighting her well-toned legs. _Just for tonight, I want to enjoy myself. Not as a kunoichi, but as a normal girl._

As if on cue, a whirlwind of green and black blazed in front of her, and Tenten chuckled at how Lee had managed to find a suit that matched the color of his spandex uniform. "Tenten!" he beamed, doing a Nice Gai pose. "You look wonderful tonight!"

The kunoichi grinned. "Thanks Lee," she responded. "You don't look so bad yourself." And it was true. Now that she thought about it, green was actually a good color for her teammate. Lee could be handsome, if he actually paid more attention to his appearance rather than spend all his free time running laps around Konoha.

"Care for a dance, oh youthful flower?" Lee offered a gallant hand, and Tenten was about to answer, except that the taijutsu expert was not finished yet. "Because if you don't, I promise to run fifty laps around Konoha first thing tomorrow, and if I don't finish it, I'll . . ."

Facepalming herself, she cut him off. "Of course I'll dance with you," she answered, linking her fingers with Lee's. The Konoha Green Beast _beamed _as he guided her to the dance floor. Giddily, they spun around, Lee strutting here and there, Tenten wiping her eyes from too much laughter. After three upbeat songs that tested both their bodies' flexibility, Tenten finally begged off, leaving Lee to his ridiculous antics while she hunted for the refreshments table.

She found Neji leaning against a nearby post. For a split-second she felt conscious of her appearance, but then she reminded herself that for that night, it was all about herself, not anyone else. Flashing the Hyuuga genius a cheeky smile, Tenten poured herself a drink before addressing him. "Sulking, as always?" she teased, taking a sip of grape punch.

"I am not interested in such childish nonesense," came the monotone response.

Tenten did not even fight the urge to roll her eyes. "Oh, can't you _not _be serious for one night?"

Neji studied her with intense gray orbs, it was all Tenten could do not to run away. Finally, he said, very matter-of-factly, "You look . . . nice."

"Eh?" Had she heard him right? Did Hyuuga Neji just give her a compliment?

When Neji merely continued to stare, Tenten decided to take a chance. "How about a dance?" she offered, extending an arm for Neji to take. Her sparring partner answered with a silent glare. She felt a little disappointed, but quickly dismissed it as something unimportant. "Nevermind," she shrugged, looking back at the dance floor, where Lee was apparently doing cartwheels. "Not my fault if you grow roots from standing there for too long."

And just when she thought Neji was finally going to reply, Kiba approached the pair, smiling his trademark Inuzuka grin. "Tenten-san," he began, trying his best not to look at the now-glaring-at-him Hyuuga. "Care for a dance?" he glanced at Neji, and gulped. "That is, if Neji-san won't mind, of course."

Tenten half-hoped Neji would say that he _did _mind, but Kiba's question was answered with silence. _Of course, _she thought bitterly. She downed the rest of her drink, slammed the glass on the table, and linked her right arm with Kiba's left one. "Don't be silly," she chuckled, half-dragging him to the dance floor. "Neji doesn't have a say on who I dance with tonight, neh, Neji?"

She glanced back at him, and was almost satisfied to see that Neji had followed their retreating forms with cold, cold eyes that showed just the tiniest hint of activating the Byakugan.

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><p><strong>I've had a little trouble coming up with something for this prompt. But now it's finished, and although I'm sure it won't be the best in the collection, I kind of like how it ended. I can just <em>feel <em>Neji's glare. Kiba should fear for his life.**

**Cheers to my lovely reviewers KNO, DarkAnonymous324, Crestfallenfeline and fyd818. And to everyone who added me in their Favorite Author and Author Alert, and this in their Favorite Story and Story Alert. Gosh, you guys rock.**

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows.**


	4. Sleepwaking

**Title: Sleepwaking**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji, Shikamaru**

**Summary: "Why are you with _him_?"**

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><p><strong>Sleepwaking<strong>

"Do you count sheep backward to fall asleep?"

She knew the question was silly, but she was feeling silly anyway. To say that the _entire thing_ felt silly only added to her conviction that it was okay to ask silly questions.

She heard a _tch _beside her, and somehow, she knew what answer she'd get even before she actually got one.

"No. Too troublesome."

Tenten grinned. "Typical," she murmured, staring lazily at the clouds. An arm's length away, Nara Shikamaru half-dozed, half-entertained her questions.

"Tch," the genius replied, which only made Tenten chuckle.

"Ah, that one looks like a pineapple," she pointed out to a drifting cloud. "No, scratch that," she said, after studying the cloud more closely. "It actually looks more like your head, Shika!"

She got an exasperated groan in response.

Tenten giggled and closed her eyes. Had anyone suggested a month ago that she'd be cloudwatching with Shikamaru at that very spot, Tenten would have laughed out loud until her guts burst out of her nostrils. While she had nothing against the lazy chunnin, Tenten just couldn't see herself hanging around with him. He was so complacent, so _lethargic, _that she could not imagine how he'd be able to keep up with her hyperactivity. And could anyone blame her? She had spent her entire life as a Konoha ninja training with Team Gai. And her team, especially Lee and Maito Gai, was well-known for their rigorous workouts and trainings.

But a crack mission that Yamanaka Ino could not go to _forced_ her to get to know Shikamaru more, and Tenten realized that albeit a lazy ass, he was actually a fun person to get along with. Before she could even realize what had happened, she found herself spending more and more time with him, watching clouds or playing shogi or just, well, lazing around.

At first she was a little worried of what her team would think—_spending time with a shinobi who'd rather sleep than train, how unyouthful!_—but later on she figured there was nothing wrong with what she was doing. She didn't miss any of her trainings or spars with Neji, and it wasn't as if spending time with Shikamaru made her less accurate in throwing her weapons. Now that she thought about it, she had actually gotten sharper, mostly because of her games of shogi, which forced her to be more analytical of her moves. Really, she couldn't see anything wrong with what she was doing.

When Tenten half-opened her eyes, she saw a familiar pair of clouds directly in front of her. "Hey, that looks like Neji's eyes," she murmured dreamily, when the said pair of clouds _blinked._

And _talked._

"Tenten."

"Neji!" Tenten exclaimed, sitting upright all of a sudden, hitting her forehead against her teammate's. She winced; they were both wearing forehead protectors, but that didn't make the impact less painful. Rubbing her head, she looked up and saw Hyuuga Neji sitting a few feet away, rubbing his own.

"Geez, Neji!" she said. "What are you doing, surprising me like that?" she complained. "I could have thrown a kunai at you!"

Neji shot her a like-you-could-do-that-to-the-almighty-genius kind of look, before he stood up and dusted himself off.

"You're late for practice."

It was said so matter-of-factly, Tenten could not bring herself to think that he was joking. Besides, Neji never jokes.

Still, she was mildly offended. "What do you mean I'm late for practice?" she asked incredulously. "It's only three in the . . ." She started to wave her hand for emphasis, only to find out that the sky was already a light red shade, signaling the upcoming sunset. "What? What time is it?"

Neji raised a cocky eyebrow. "It's close to six in the evening."

"Eh?" Tenten gasped. Had she fallen asleep? But she was just talking to Shikamaru earlier. Which reminded her, "Oi Shika! I told you to . . ." Her words drifted off when she saw Shikamaru beside her, snoring softly. "Gah!" she screeched, throwing a small stone at the genius. Shikamaru blinked open sleepy eyes and turned to her. "What was that for?"

"I told you to remind me that I have a sparring session with Neji at four!"

Shikamaru sat up lazily, scratching his head. "But you looked so peaceful, sleeping like that."

Tenten was about to throw another stone at Shikamaru when Neji spoke up from her other side, a hint of annoyance in his voice. "Why are you with _him_?"

Tenten turned and glared. Normally, she'd have an explanation out the second he _demanded_ one, but the way Neji had asked his question made her annoyed for some reason. "I didn't know I had to consult with you my choice of friends."

Neji returned the glare, only colder. "You don't."

Tenten _growled. _"Could have fooled me."

They glared at each other for a couple more seconds, before Neji tore his eyes away. "I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Excuse me?"

His back already turned to them, the prodigy continued, "Since you're too _busy_ watching the clouds to come to our session today, I'll just see you tomorrow." There it was again, that _something _in his voice that Tenten could not figure out. It was as if he wanted to say something else, but being the stuck-up, stoic person that he was, he couldn't bring himself to do it.

"What are you . . ." but before Tenten could even finish her sentence, Neji already walked off, leaving her and Shikamaru alone. "That arrogant piece of . . . argh!" she hissed, turning to Shikamaru and glaring at _him. _"What are you looking at?" she demanded, ready to unleash a barrage of weapons if he as much as squeaked a wrong word.

Shikamaru, being the genius that he was, merely shrugged and lied down again.

"Troublesome."

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><p><strong>To listen to this beautiful song, search "Lost Things" by A Fine Frenzy in YouTube. It's a beautiful Alice-in-Wonderland-ish video that features this song. Come on, I demand, err, encourage you all to go look for it.<strong>

**I'd totally support TentenxShikamaru, if Neji wasn't in the picture. That, and I don't remember any scene in the manga where the two actually interacted. Of course I can't say the same for the anime, because I don't really watch it. Anyway.**

**Big, big thanks to my lovely, lovely reviewers Sepsis, KNO, DarkAnonymous324, starisice, Kari-Kateora, and Neji'sGirl185. You guys make it all worth it.**

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows.**


	5. Bleezer's Ice Cream

**Title: Bleezer's Ice Cream**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji, Lee**

**Summary: "What exactly is _this_?" Tenten asked, studying the cup in front of her. Neji would not even look at it anymore; he was too fixated on trying to impale Lee with his glare.**

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><p><strong>Bleezer's Ice Cream<strong>

"Yosh! Thank you for waiting, oh youthful flower and my eternal rival! Dessert is now served!"

There was a _clang _on the table, as Lee enthusiastically plopped down three ice cream cups in front of his teammates. Sitting down on the vacant chair beside Tenten, he offered two teaspoons to his friends, excited to dig in his own cup.

Tenten and Neji blinked (well, Tenten blinked, and Neji glared).

"Uh, Lee?" The kunoichi started, uncertain, not wanting to say anything to offend her teammate.

"Yes?" Lee responded, left hand still suspended in midair, the teaspoons dangling sadly between his fingers.

"What exactly is _this_?" Tenten asked, studying the cup in front of her. Neji would not even look at it anymore; he was too fixated on trying to impale Lee with his glare.

"Why, Tenten! You shouldn't spend all of your time training with my rival here!" he started, waving the teaspoons in front of her. "I can't believe Neji forces you to spar with him so much that you are no longer acquainted with the simple pleasures of life!" He waved his other hand at Neji, who was sitting across him and the weapons' mistress. His glare was as icy as ever, but Lee (and Tenten) had long been immune to it. "This, my youthful flower, is what people call ice cream!"

Tenten resisted the urge to glare herself, since Neji was already doing a very good job at it. "I _know _what ice cream is," she said, groaning a little. "I'm just not too sure what flavor _this _is."

She risked another glance at the cup, and felt the sudden urge to puke. The three cups were _oozing _with a green . . . something, looking suspiciously inedible. Averting her eyes, she turned her full attention to her friend instead. "Lee, exactly what did you put in this homemade ice cream of yours?"

The green beast of Konoha beamed proudly. "Avocado Brussels sprouts!"

A dramatic pause for emphasis (in which Tenten fought the urge to run to the sink and empty the contents of her stomach).

"I've worked on this recipe with Gai-sensei for weeks before I was able to perfect it, and I wanted you and Neji to be the first to try it!"

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw veins appear around Neji's eyes, which she suspected were not from activating the byakugan.

"B-Brussels sprouts?" she managed to stutter.

"Hmm-mmh!" Lee nodded vigorously. "Gai-sensei said it's important to eat my vegetables, and what better way to eat them than as a dessert, right?"

Tenten made a mental note never to let Maito Gai near her kitchen. Or give her dietary advice, for that matter.

"Come on, you must try it!" Lee said, scooping a spoonful of the _stuff _and shoving it near Tenten's mouth. "It's delicious, I promise!"

Tenten shrank back, and shot Neji a silent plea of help. The Hyuuga, unfortunately, was in the process of trying not to run to the sink and empty the contents of _Lee's _stomach.

"I . . . I think I'll pass," the weapons' mistress said nervously, inching away from the spoon. "I think I've had, uh, too many sesame dumplings this afternoon anyway."

"But you must try it! Just one spoonful!" Lee insisted, the spoon hovering dangerously near Tenten's face.

"N-no, Lee, I really can't eat any more, I'm sorry!"

"Just one spoonful, Tenten!"

"Lee, I said no!"

"But—"

"Lee!"

Her defense mechanism kicked in, and before she even knew what she was doing, she swatted the spoon away from her, the whole thing flying out of Lee's hand, and landed with a soft _plop . . . _on Neji's head.

It took Tenten exactly seven minutes and fifty-three seconds to pry Neji's fingers away from Lee's neck.

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><p><strong>This one-shot was, well, weird. My original plan was to have Lee bring the ice cream to their training ground, but I figured it was better if he forced them to eat it in his own home, like, there was a sense of them being trapped or something. Uh, right. Anyway, if you read the entire list of flavors in the song, you'll find that Avocado brussels sprouts is not the worst of them (<em>Tuna taco baked potato<em> and _Yam anchovy prune pastrami_ will give me nightmares for weeks).**

**Again, thank you for reading and reviewing. You guys rock, seriously. Like, if I had a real rock beside me right now, you would still rock better than that rock. Wait, deja vu. Did I already say that in another story?**

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows.**


	6. News

**Title: News**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji**

**Summary: "Are those the only things you're good at?" Tenten _hissed. _"Glaring and beating me up to a bloody pulp?"**

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><p><strong>News<strong>

The day Tenten finally had enough was the day the first leaf of autumn fell.

She and Neji were having an extremely exhausting sparring session, so hard that Tenten was sure she had to drop by the hospital later to have her ribs checked—Neji had gentle fisted her several times, the next one more forceful than the previous one.

It wasn't as if she wasn't used to that kind of treatment—she had been the Hyuuga's partner since their genin days—and now that she was a chunnin and Neji finally a jounin, she knew she had to work harder to keep up with him. But Neji had been wearing her out for weeks already, with barely any rest in between. She didn't think anything amiss of it at first; it was a known fact that Team Gai was the most train-a-holic team in their batch, and tiring sessions with either Lee or Neji was not unheard of.

Neji never offered an explanation for the sudden strenuous activities, and when Tenten requested for quick breaks, he would look at her with something akin to disappointment, and Tenten felt like it was worse that the icy glares he would normally give.

It was already too much.

"Neji," Tenten suddenly burst out, somersaulting away before Neji could close what was left of her chakra points. "What is wrong with you?"

The Gentle Fist user stopped in mid-attack, palms on the ready. Breaking his stance, he stood straight and regarded his teammate with gray Hyuuga eyes. He made no answer, which only exasperated Tenten even more.

"Are those the only things you're good at?" Tenten _hissed. _"Glaring and beating me up to a bloody pulp?"

Neji had the decency to look offended. "I have always been like this."

"Exactly!" Tenten continued. "And you of all people should know that I normally wouldn't mind. But I'm this close to asking Gai to let me train with Lee instead!" Both of them knew that Gai held no real power over them anymore, except when they're assigned missions together, but it still made Neji cringe.

"You'd rather train with Lee than me," he said matter-of-factly.

"At least he cares to make sure I stay alive after the end of each session," Tenten replied. It was a low blow, because she knew that Neji in fact did care for her too, no matter how subtly he showed it. But she was tired, she was hurt, and her ego was bruised beyond repair. And it didn't help that the Hyuuga didn't look apologetic at all, or even willing to explain why he was pushing her to work so hard.

"I have no intention of killing you either." That was as close as Neji would admit to caring for her, Tenten knew. That sobered her a little, but not much.

"Not with the way you've been beating me up for the past month," she managed, her adrenaline slowly ebbing away, until she realized she was about to _cry._

Neji appeared to be trying to think of what to say, and Tenten held her breath. Finally, the Hyuuga prodigy answered, "I need you to be strong."

Tenten blinked. _The hell? _"You think I'm _weak_?" she growled lowly, the first tear falling.

Neji closed his eyes and shook his head. "No," he answered, opening gray orbs and looking at Tenten with, what was it, concern? Worry? "I just need you to be stronger."

"What, you think I won't be strong enough to watch your back?" To say that Tenten was offended was an understatement. Very few things made her proud of herself, and one of them was the fact that she was an excellent backup for her teammates, especially Neji. She was his eyes when his blind spot prevented him from seeing an attack, and she was there to clean up the enemies that his Gentle Fist could not reach. To hear from him, of all people, that she was not strong enough, was a blow harder and more painful than the one Temari used to finish her off during her first Chunnin Exams.

"No," the Hyuuga replied, and Tenten saw it again, that look of worry, of anxiety, that she seldom saw in Neji's eyes. "I have always trusted in you. You should know that," he said, his voice painfully honest, and Tenten found herself shedding tears for a different reason altogether.

And just when Tenten thought he would go on a long soliloquy about fate like he used to, Neji simply said, "Let's end our session for today then. I'll see you next week."

"N-next week?" Tenten stuttered. "But it's only Wednesday! What are you . . ."

"I need to take care of something now, Tenten," Neji replied, and Tenten thought she saw a ghost of a smile on the Hyuuga's lips, and her heart felt _cold. _"Next week, then."

"W-wait!" Tenten called out, but Neji already took off. She was left in the middle of their training ground, feeling more lost than she ever thought was possible.

The following Monday, a messenger from the Hokage dropped by her house, handed her a scroll, and instructed her to report at the tower that afternoon.

Tenten was so stunned by the message that she dropped the scroll after reading the entire thing.

It was a letter notifying her that she was a candidate for the next Jounin Exams.

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><p><strong>Thanks for the lovely reviews, Sepsis, staricise, Crestfallenfeline, DarkAnonymous324 and Neji'sGirl185, as always.<strong>

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows.**


	7. Empire Ants

**Title: Empire Ants**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji, Lee**

**Summary: She shrieked, thinking that was usually the time Neji would burst in the room to incapacitate their target. Only this time, no Neji appeared. **

**A/N: A little more serious/mature, so I'm notching up the Rating one level higher for this piece, just to be safe.**

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><p><strong>Empire Ants<strong>

Mornings after missions were always the hardest for her. Especially if said mission involved seduction, torture _and _death— not necessarily in that order. And now that both she and Lee were nominated to participate in the next Jounin Exams, it seemed as if missions like those began to increase in number. Worse, Gai or Neji, being jounins themselves, could no longer accompany them all the time, so they have to be paired up with other shinobi, or sometimes sent as a two-man cell instead of the usual four.

Tenten stared at her reflection in the mirror, after laboriously dragging herself out of bed. The girl—strange, she still looked like a girl—staring back at her looked dishelved, tired, spent. She felt older than her years, way older, and she wondered if she'd die one day feeling like an old woman, when in fact she has not reached the ripe age of twenty yet.

Sighing, Tenten finally headed to the bathroom, taking her morning shower with less enthusiasm than before. She wanted the hot water to make her feel clean, but no matter how scalding on the skin it became, it still failed to wash away the dirt and grime she felt.

Because she felt dirty _inside._

It wasn't as if it was the first time she had to seduce someone. Her first time was messier—the mark was dead drunk and grabbed her right breast and licked her neck and almost ripped off her dress, had Neji not suddenly appeared out of nowhere, ending the man's life with a quick snap of the neck. Tenten found herself clinging to Neji afterward, trembling uncontrollably as the Hyuuga held her in his arms, his jacket draped around her shoulders. When Lee and Gai found them a couple of minutes later, she had already stopped shivering, but neither she nor Neji was willing to tell their other teammates exactly what happened before Neji killed their target.

Her next seduction assignments were executed far more properly after that first one, although it became an unspoken rule in the team that she was not to engage in any sexual contact with the target, no matter how bad the situation became. That, and Tenten and the mark always had to be within the range of Neji's byakugan, so that the Hyuuga could assist her if things got out of control.

But Neji had been promoted to jounin, and was on a solo mission when Tenten received the order. She and Lee were going solo—or duo—to retrieve an important scroll from a nearby village. It sounded easy enough, except there was a catch, as there usually was. The owner of the house they had to infiltrate was a wealthy businessman who kept the scroll under lock and key, and wore the key around his neck 24/7. The only way to get the key was to seduce the mark, put him to sleep, and retrieve the scroll before he wakes up, or before they are caught by his numerous bodyguards.

Tenten shuddered as she recalled what happened next. She seduced the mark, all right, got him to invite her into his mansion, talk dirty to her, feel her up in inappropriate places, and bring her to his bedroom. She could have easily pricked him with senbons tipped with a sleeping drug, but the mark had ripped off her dress before she got the chance. She shrieked, thinking that was usually the time Neji would burst in the room to incapacitate their target. Only this time, no Neji appeared; said Hyuuga was still on his way back from his mission in Suna.

Lee, hearing Tenten's scream, reached the room five minutes later, after successfully beating the rest of the businessman's guards. He found her repeatedly stabbing a lifeless corpse, her dress shredded, the right strap of her bra torn, her face purple with bruises. Obviously, the man knew how to fight. But that didn't save him from being showered with half a hundred poisonous senbons Tenten had hidden in her hair, since she was not permitted to carry any kunai or shuriken because of her clothes.

Lee had to drag _her _away from the body to stop her from distorting what was left of _its_ face.

Turning off the shower, Tenten stepped out of the bathroom, put on civilian clothes, and curled in her bed once more. There was no getting out of her house that day, she knew, not when she felt dirty all over. The mission was a success, but there had been an unnecessary casualty. She _killed _a man. It wasn't her first time either, but that didn't make it any less horrible.

Only when Neji knocked on her front door that afternoon that Tenten found the strength to get up from bed.

"Hey," she greeted weakly, making way for him as he stepped inside her small apartment. "When did you get back?"

Neji regarded Tenten quietly as she closed the door. "About an hour ago."

"Oh," Tenten replied, smiling bleakly, noticing Neji's strange look. "Lee didn't . . . ?"

"He did."

Sighing, Tenten hung her head dejectedly, pushing past the Hyuuga to sit on her small wooden couch. Neji silently followed.

"You didn't have to check on me," she whispered, not meeting her friend's eyes. "I'll get over it. I always do." A pause. "Would you like some tea?" All the time she spoke, she could not bring herself to look at Neji's face, couldn't show him how dirty she felt. Still, it was so hard, with Neji being characteristically quiet like that, and she wasn't sure if he thought of her as unclean, as impure, like she always felt after missions like the one she just had.

"Tenten."

Tenten hunched her shoulders lower. The guilt of killing someone, the feeling of being violated—they were becoming harder and harder to bear.

"I am sure that after that mission, you are still," Neji started, then paused, as if straining to say his next words, "as Gai and Lee would say," and Tenten _looked up_ to see Neji clench his teeth, ". . . youthful."

She blinked, and stared, and suddenly started laughing, laughing and crying and clutching her stomach, because it hurt to laugh so hard and cry at the same time. She only stopped when she felt a hand on her shoulder, and she looked up, tears still in her eyes, and smiled her first real smile since she received her mission details five days ago.

"Yes," she whispered, and Neji cracked a small smile himself, "youthful indeed."

* * *

><p><strong>To be honest, this isn't what I had originally planned. I didn't think it would end up so…depressing. This was a hard song for a prompt though. I mean, I like Gorillaz, but this particular song was <strong>_**hard. **_**I do hope it didn't fall short of your expectations.**

**By the way, just a little bit of shameless plugging, but I wrote a sort of companion piece to "Sleepwaking" (chapter 4) entitled "The Lost Things." That one's from Shikamaru's POV. Please check it out and let me know what you think, because, well, I love Shikamaru to bits.**

**Huzzah to my lovely, lovely reviewers DarkAnonymous324, Sepsis, hihimakino, Kari-Kateora, Neji'sGirl185, Franoncrack, and Lucky Denver Mint. I grin every time I receive an email notifying me that I have a new review.**

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows.**


	8. All is Full of Love

**Title: All is Full of Love**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji, Lee, Gai**

**Summary: Tenten turned to meet the pale gray eyes of Neji, staring intently at her. "That will never happen to us."**

* * *

><p><strong>All is Full of Love<strong>

The night after the Konoha 11 officially disowned Uchiha Sasuke and voted in favor of killing him to prevent a possible war from happening, Team Gai had dinner together, the last one they'd have in a _very _long time. Sakura was to set out after Naruto in the morn, and Lee had been assigned (more like volunteered) to be part of her four-man cell. The meal was nothing fancy—not with most of the village still in shambles from the aftereffects of Pein's attack—but the restaurant owner told them their food was on the house, a token of appreciation for the shinobis (and kunoichi, of course) who helped defend their beloved home.

As expected, the fate of the sole Uchiha survivor was brought up, and by the end of the meal, the table of the taijutsu-specialized team was filled with raised voices, so loud that the other diners in the restaurant seriously began to fear for their lives.

On one side sat Neji and Tenten, on the other Lee and Gai. Unfortunately, the division of opinion regarding Sasuke was not as clear as their seating arrangement. Neji mostly stayed out of it, of course, preferring to remain silent, only giving occasional input (mostly trying to keep the peace—why he even bothered was beyond him, but he had to try). Lee voiced out how unyouthful Sasuke's actions were, how it was such a shame that someone he once considered his rival had ended up with a group like Akatsuki. Gai tried to explain that men sometimes do crazy things to fulfill a goal in life.

As for Tenten, well, Tenten was a different story altogether.

"Why are you defending him?" Lee asked, for once very serious.

Tenten frowned. "I am not defending him," she answered through clenched teeth. "I'm just saying that it's not that black and white."

"But you agreed that we need to take care of him ourselves!" Lee pressed.

"To stop a war from happening!" Tenten answered.

"So are you saying that if his actions will not result to a war, you won't find anything wrong with them?"

"I didn't say that!" Tenten yelled. And then suddenly, in a softer, sadder voice, "It's just that . . . it's sad, him turning out like that."

The table suddenly turned quiet, as the kunoichi looked away, staring into empty space. Softly, she continued, "Don't you see it, Lee?" she whispered, still not meeting any of her teammates' eyes. "Sakura, Naruto, Ino, even Kakashi—they all loved him. Everyone loved him. And still . . ." Tenten sighed. "He was orphaned at an early age, his loved ones taken away from him, and because of that, he shunned the love coming from other people." A pause. "And now, he may never see it because . . ."

A soft hand on her shoulder, and Tenten turned to meet the pale gray eyes of Neji, staring intently at her. "That will never happen to us."

Tenten blinked. How was it possible for him to read her thoughts even when she couldn't fully understand them herself? How could he know that more than Sasuke's fate, Tenten was worried that there might be a possibility that they might end up the same way? All three of them lost their parents at an early age, all deprived of a loving atmosphere in their home. Gai had been their father figure when he took over their team, but before that, who did they have to love them, really?

"Neji . . ." Tears started to brim around her eyes.

"We will never run out of people who love us," he said softly. Across them, Gai closed his eyes and nodded gently, as if proud of how his students had turned out. Lee, who was arguing with her just a few moments ago, flashed her a sparkling grin and a thumbs up. The Hyuuga prodigy's lips tugged upward slightly, an indication that he was smiling at her.

"We have each other, after all."

* * *

><p><em><span>Omake<span>_

"Tenten," Lee began, as they made their way home, he and she and Neji, Gai leaving about half an hour ago, to search for his eternal rival Kakashi, in case he needed _comfort _from the news of his former student's fate. (Neji and Tenten shuddered at the thought of how Gai would comfort Kakashi, but Lee appeared enthusiastic about it.) "Why are you so affected with what happened to Sasuke-kun anyway?"

"What?" the weapons expert blurted out, suddenly caught off guard.

"Do you still like him?" Lee asked, titling his head to the side, as if trying to recall something important. Beside him, Neji _bristled._

"I found the guy cute," Tenten answered, her cheeks suddenly sporting a suspicious shade of pink. "I never said I wanted to marry him."

Neji bristled even more.

"Oh?" Lee continued. "So you did have a crush on him."

"Lee! That was ages ago!"

The taijutsu expert looked at her curiously. "So who do you like now?"

"Lee!" Tenten exclaimed, not liking where their conversation was heading.

"But Tenten, don't you have someone you admire?"

Tenten paled. "Well . . ."

Both Lee and Neji became very aware of the hesitation in Tenten's voice. "So you do have someone!" Lee beamed. "Our youthful flower is now experiencing the springtime of youth! Gai-sensei will be so proud!"

"Lee!" Tenten wasn't sure if she wanted to smack Lee, or smack herself for slipping like that.

"Who is it, Tenten?"

"What?"

"Who is this lucky guy that caught your eye?"

"Lee! Can we not talk about it?" Tenten's face was now a burning shade of red, and her walking speed suddenly increased tenfolds.

That, of course, did not deter the Konoha Green Beast. "A-ha! Before we part ways for the night, I shall make you confess who it is that you like!" Lee exclaimed. "If I don't, I'll run around the village fifty times in one hour as punishment! And if I don't finish the fifty laps, I'll run another fifty!"

"Lee!" By this time, Tenten was all but ready to run.

"Is it Kiba?"

"Kiba?" Tenten asked, bewildered. "Why would you think it's Kiba?"

"Well, you danced with him during the daimyo's ball, and you two looked really good together. Plus, you're very fond of Akamaru."

Tenten was surprised. "You were actually paying attention then?" A pause. "Kiba is fine. But no, I don't like him, at least not like that."

"Sai?"

"The guy wears more revealing clothes than I do!"

"I know! It's Shino!"

Tenten grimaced. "Not a bug person."

"Naruto then?"

"Are you out of your freaking mind?"

"Kakashi-san?"

"Lee, he's like my older brother!"

"Don't tell me it's Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!" She had a kunai ready by then.

"Shikamaru?"

Tenten opened her mouth to speak, but then paused. "Well, Shika is indeed interesting . . . a little lazy though . . . no, too lazy, in fact. But he's smart, and a challenging shogi opponent." Neither she nor Lee noticed a certain Hyuuga suddenly popping veins on his temples.

"So it is Shikamaru!" Lee said joyously, pumping his fists in the air. "It's only proper that our youthful flower falls in love with a genius!"

"Lee! I never said I'm in love with him!"

"But you admire him!"

"I admire your determination. That doesn't mean I'm in love with you."

The Konoha green beast looked stricken. "You have a crush on me too? Oh dear Tenten, as much as I like you, you know my heart belongs only to Sakura-san!"

A bonk on the head.

Tenten was so distracted she didn't even notice that they already reached her apartment. "Yosh!" Lee exclaimed. "Now that you are safely home, I shall look for Gai-sensei and tell him the good news, that our team's flower is finally experiencing the springtime of youth!"

"Lee! You've got it all wrong!" But Lee had already jumped off a rooftop, scaring a cat lazily sleeping there, shouting something about "youth" and "young love" as he went.

Tenten facepalmed herself.

"So . . . Shikamaru?"

Tenten yelped. She had forgotten that Neji was even there, quiet as he was. "Don't start," she said tiredly, not wanting him to continue where Lee had left off. Especially since . . .

"He's . . . okay."

"Okay?" Tenten blinked.

"He looks irresponsible, but I'm sure he will . . . treat you well."

_Ah._"Are you saying you approve of me having a relationship with him?"

"Are you saying you want to have a relationship with him?"

"What?"

"What?"

"Stop repeating my words."

"I am not repeating your words."

Tenten sighed and rubbed her forehead. "This is getting us nowhere," she said, exasperated, and opened her front door. "I'm going in. You should go home too."

"So do you like him?" Apparently, Neji could be as stubborn as Lee if he wanted to.

Tenten sighed in defeat, turning slowly to face her friend again. "Let's just say I like geniuses. As to what kind of geniuses," she paused, suddenly smiling softly. "Well, who knows?"

Later, as Tenten recalled what had happened, she would swear that she had never seen Neji smile as widely as he had smiled that very moment.

* * *

><p><strong>After facilitating one workshop, directing a pantomime, writing a book review, designing and doing the layout of a book, and proofreading a manuscript, not to mention dealing with the repairs of a defective project, I am finally able to release this next chapter. Thank God June is finally over.<strong>

**Again, many thanks to my lovely reviewers ****BonyKlayd, ****DarkAnonymous324, ****Sepsis, ****Crestfallenfeline, ****Red Shades, ****Neji'sGirl185, starisice, and ****Pitacus Lore. And to those who added me in their Alerts and Favorites.**

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows.**


	9. I'd Rather Dance With You

**Title: I'd Rather Dance With You**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji**

**Summary: ****Shifting slightly, she saw Neji in her peripheral vision, taking on a Gentle Fist stance. She exhaled tensed breath she didn't know she had been holding, and slowly, ever so slowly, she faced her sparring partner, her comrade, her friend.**

* * *

><p><strong>I'd Rather Dance With You<strong>

She felt his presence the second he appeared in the clearing, but she didn't stop throwing kunais and shurikens at her target: a tree trunk exactly seventy meters away from where she was standing. She knew he was watching her, waiting for her to acknowledge him, but she refused to stop. He could watch until he grew bored for all she cared, but she was not going to stop until her arsenal run out—which, from the looks of it, would be in another three hours or so.

To say that she was frustrated was an understatement. She wanted _it _so much; dreamed of it countless times during her years in the Academy. Being assigned to Team Gai only drove her to desire it more—to be an elite Jounin worthy of solo missions, much like her former sensei and her sparring partner were. And actually seeing the possibility of reaching that dream—not only for her but for Lee as well—and then having it all taken away, was like having the rug pulled out from right under her feet.

She knew it was nobody's fault. Or if someone was to blame, it has to be the Akatsuki. Because it was that group that caused all this madness to begin with, and now, a great shinobi war was going to take place, and who would have time for a stupid Jounin exam, right?

She was being selfish, that much she knew. So what if she and Lee could not take the exam? So what if they would not get the official title of Jounin until who knows when? They swore an oath to protect their village, and now, they were required to swear an oath to protect the world. Wasn't that more honorable than a _stupid _title?

Still, she found herself venting out her frustration, her disappointment, on a poor tree trunk that surely had seen better days. And now she feared that if she as much as turned to face Neji, she would vent her anger at him instead.

_This has nothing to do with you._

A sudden sigh, and Tenten stopped a kunai in mid-throw. Shifting slightly, she saw Neji in her peripheral vision, taking on a Gentle Fist stance. She exhaled tensed breath she didn't know she had been holding, and slowly, ever so slowly, she faced her sparring partner, her comrade, her friend.

And they _danced_.

Much, much later, Tenten would try to convince herself that their little dance was no different from their other fights—Neji tried to seal all of her chakra points, and Tenten tried to pulverize him with a variety of kunais, shurikens, and senbon needles (and a tonfa, and a battle axe, and . . . ). And yet, when they abruptly stopped trying to incapacitate each other—Neji's palm directly over Tenten's heart, Tenten's left hand clutching a kunai against Neji's neck—something _different _happened.

Because after staring into each other's eyes, a silent understanding suddenly took place. Slowly, Neji lifted his right hand, and gently, very gently, pressed his index and middle fingers on Tenten's face, a couple of centimeters below her cheekbone. And instead of beating faster, Tenten's heart slowed to a steady rate, as if it finally calmed down after all the pain it had been through.

And Neji smiled one of his rare smiles reserved only for her, and Tenten offered a smile that said so many things and yet so little, and even then, neither of them spoke a single word.

Both of them knew there was no need to.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, that was nice, wasn't it? I intentionally did not put any dialogue in this chapter, just to try if it will work. I hope it did.<strong>

**I'm officially seven chapters away from the end of this collection. I have the next four chapters already plotted in my mind, then it's whatever-I-come-up-with after that. Oh, and for those who are interested in my writing process, it usually takes me a week to organize the thoughts in my head, and then thirty minutes to two hours to actually write the whole thing, depending on how long the chapter is, or what other stuff I need to do in between****.**

**Again, many thanks to my reviewers ****Sepsis****, ****Neji'sGirl185****, Red Shades (who forgot to type in her name), ****Kari-Kateora****, ****Lucky Denver Mint and ****teresita123****. I'm sorry if I haven't gotten the chance to reply to you guys individually, but this week had been so hectic I actually put myself into Facebook, Twitter and YM fasting just so I could concentrate on the things I have to do.**

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows.**


	10. Life is Better

**Title: Life is Better**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji, Lee**

**Summary: ****"Maybe because, at least, if we don't say what we want to say right now, we'd have a reason to keep fighting, right?"**

* * *

><p><strong>Life is Better<strong>

She was fifteen minutes earlier than the appointed time, and still, he beat her to it.

She saw him meditating under his favorite tree—the tree he often leaned on, eyes closed, while she threw a variety of kunai and shuriken at the target board half a meter above his head. He looked relaxed, sleeping even, but Tenten knew he was as tense as she was, although he was definitely way better at hiding it.

Flipping a kunai expertly using her left hand, she aimed, and threw the weapon toward him, its pointy end stabbing the bull's eye mark on the board. Neji did not even flinch.

That was how much he trusted her accuracy.

Smiling, Tenten decided to let her teammate finish with his meditation, opting to move further away to practice her skills with another tree trunk. She lost track of time, until she felt his presence behind her, quietly watching her throw the last senbon smack in the middle of two kunai about two centimeters apart.

"Finished?" she breathed, not facing him, no, just standing there, a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips.

"Yes," was his monotone response.

"Okay then," she answered, trying to sound lighthearted. "Lee and Gai-sensei should be here in a bit."

She didn't want to turn around, because for all her bravery, she was, at that very moment, very much _afraid_.

It was Neji who came nearer, placing a warm hand on her right shoulder. Tenten drew a sharp intake of breath.

"You're assigned to the First Division with my uncle," he said.

Tenten blinked. She shouldn't have been surprised; most of the mid-range fighters have been assigned to that squad, and of course Neji would know something like that. Still, it pleased her that he thought it wasn't such a waste of brain cells to actually note what division she was going to be in.

"Yes," she answered, "and you'll be with Hinata."

"Yes," Neji answered, his hand not leaving Tenten's shoulder. He paused; Tenten held her breath. "I won't be able to watch your back."

Tenten forced back a chuckle. "In case you've forgotten, Hyuuga, I have been to countless missions without having to suffer your company."

She tried to imagine what the Hyuuga genius's reaction was to her lame attempt of a joke, but realized that the Byakugan user probably did not even find her statement amusing. His next words caught her by surprise though. "No one will watch out for my blind spot too."

She was pleased, flattered, even, that Neji trusted her that much.

She smiled despite herself. "I'm sure you'll manage," she said softly. "You're a genius, after all." She felt Neji squeeze her shoulder, and she wasn't sure if it was from gratitude or mild annoyance.

And then, "I need to tell you something."

"Ah." Before she realized what she was doing, she swiveled her head to the right, finally meeting Neji's gray orbs for the first time that morning. "Can it wait?" she asked, a bit hesitatingly.

Neji creased his forehead a fraction of a millimeter, but Tenten saw it. "For what?" he asked.

Tenten took a step back, effectively brushing Neji's hand away. "Until _this _ends." _Until the war ends, and we can go back to our old, routine of a life._

Neji looked at her quizzically. "Why?"

The weapons' expert shrugged. "I don't know," she replied truthfully, smiling that small, sad smile again. "Maybe because, at least, if we don't say what we want to say right now, we'd have a reason to keep fighting, right?" _We have a reason to try our very best not to get killed._

The Byakugan user regarded her with emotionless eyes. Tenten kept her smile in place, because if she let it falter for just the tiniest bit, she knew Neji would notice, and he would know how much she wanted to hear what he was supposed to say.

"Okay."

"Great!" Tenten beamed, turning around quickly to hide the disappointment in her eyes. "I wonder where Lee and Gai-sensei are…"

"Life's been better ever since I met you."

Tenten froze in midsentence, her breath caught in her throat. Before she could collect herself, Neji was already standing in front of her, touching her left cheek gently, the way he did the last time they sparred, when she was so angry because the Jounin exams had been cancelled because of the war.

"W-what?"

And the Hyuuga genius _smiled, _and repeated his earlier words. "Life's been better ever since I met you."

Tenten drew out a shaky breath. "Oh."

Just as quickly, Neji's hand dropped to his side, and this time, it was he who turned around. "But that's not what I was supposed to say." He paused. "That one can wait."

_Ah._

She took as step forward, as if trying to formulate the words to say. "Ne—"

"Yosh! I am here, our youthful flower and my eternal rival!"

A green blur jumped and tumbled in between them, and whatever Tenten wanted to say was forgotten amid the _chaos_ that ensued.

"Lee!"

"Are you ready to test our springtime of youth against the villains of love and freedom, Tenten?" the spandex-loving shinobi asked, giving the kunoichi a thumbs-up and a blinding smile.

The silence lasted for about ten seconds, until a squirrel scampered from one end of the clearing to the next, stopping just long enough to regard the taijutsu expert with wide, confused eyes.

And Tenten _laughed, _bubbles of relief dissipating all of her initial fears, because, really, what was she so worried about in the first place?

Team Gai _is_ one of the strongest teams in all of Konoha. Together or apart, she knew all of them would survive.

One glance at Neji and his amused smile only reinforced her realization.

"Yes Lee," she answered breathlessly. "I'm ready."

* * *

><p><strong>And I'm finally done with the tenth chapter! Woot!<strong>

**Oh, a question. Please indulge me? Out of all the chapters I've written so far, which is your favorite? Which one do you liked the least, or did not like at all? Feedback will be super!**

**Erm, anyway. Thanks to my awesome reviewers Sepsis, DarkAnonymous324 and Wroathe. And to those who added me in their favorites and alerts. Gosh, you guys, I can't even. Thanks!**

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows.**


	11. Holiday

**Title: Holiday**

**Characters: Tenten, Shikamaru, mention of Neji, Gai and Lee**

**Summary: "Do you want to go on a vacation when all of this is over?"**

* * *

><p><strong>Holiday<strong>

"_Yosh! For this youthful occasion, I challenge you, my eternal rival, to a fifty-lap swimming contest around the hot spring!"_

"_Hell no."_

"_But Neji, it will be unyouthful for you to turn down a challenge from your lifetime rival!"_

"_You're not _his _lifetime rival, Lee. You're the only one who considers Neji as your rival, remember?"_

"_Oh my youthful flower! You hurt me with your words! I would have thought that you, of all people, would recognize the importance of my rivalry with Neji!"_

"_Lee! I know how important your rivalry with Neji is! It's the sign of being a true man!"_

"_Gai-sensei!"_

"_Lee!"_

"_Gai-sensei!"_

"_Lee!"_

_Cue in waves crashing on the beach during sunset._

"_I'm sorry you have to be stuck with them for the next hour."_

"…"

"_I mean, I'd invite you over to our side of the spring, but while I don't mind sharing the pool with you, I think the other girls would."_

"…"

_"On second thought, as long as you show those abs of yours, I don't think they'd mind at all."_

"_Tenten."_

"_I'm kidding! Well, I'm off to the girls' hot springs, Neji. I hope you survive your ordeal. Please try not to kill them while I'm not around, 'kay?"_

"_Tenten."_

"_Hm?"_

"_Such a troublesome woman."_

"Huh?"

Tenten's brown eyes snapped open, and staring at her, his facial expression a mixture of worry and mild consternation, was no other than Nara Shikamaru, proxy for Gaara and acting commander of the Fourth Division. "Shika?"

She heard a _tch, _and watched as Shikamaru cleaned imaginary earwax using his right pinky finger. "Like I said, you're such a troublesome woman."

"I am most certainly not!" Tenten exclaimed, trying to get up, only to realize that she could barely move a muscle.

Gentle hands kept her in place, and when she stopped resisting, she felt Shikamaru sit down beside her makeshift cot. Both of them looked up at the clouds, just like they used to, when times were still relatively peaceful, and they were not required to lay their lives on the line for a war that will decide the future of the world.

"What happened?" she whispered, watching as a patch of cloud, suspiciously shaped like Lee's eyebrow, drifted past.

"You used up too much chakra, you troublesome girl," the lazy chunnin answered to her right, poking his index finger against her forehead protector. "You could have died."

Tenten smiled. "Ah. It's that weird-looking fan, is it?"

Another _tch. _"And you don't even sound apologetic about it. Whatever am I going to do with you?"

This time, Tenten _grinned. _"Continue to worry about me, I guess."

"Tch."

The kunoichi chuckled. They stayed in companionable silence for a few seconds, the distant sound of fighting in their background. It was a sort of relief, to have someone like Shikamaru be with her in one of her weakest moments (a brief image of a concerned Neji flashed before her mind, but it quickly flickered away, much to her disdain). She had only briefly seen the Nara genius before they got assigned to their respective divisions, but she had made it a point to approach him and remind him not to slack off, and "I'm sure you won't die. You're too lazy even for that," which earned her a _tch _and a "troublesome" that she had become so fond of.

"Are we winning?" she finally asked, softly.

She felt him shrug. "Who knows?"

Silence once again.

"Shika?"

"Hm?"

"Are you…okay?" _Did fighting with your former sensei hurt like hell?_

"…"

She smiled. "No, don't answer that." Lifting her left arm, she reached for Shikamaru, and tapped his nose with her index finger, knowing he wouldn't swat it away, because he'd find it too troublesome to do so. "Say Shika," she continued. "Do you want to go on a vacation when all of this is over?"

The shadow manipulator returned the gesture by tapping _Tenten's _nose. "A vacation sounds like the best thing in the world right now."

He sounded so tired, but Tenten knew he was smiling. The weapons expert closed her eyes and smiled back. "Yeah." Images of her, Neji, Lee and Gai relaxing at a hot spring came unbidden in her mind. What she wouldn't give to see her teammates—_comrades, friends, family_—that very moment.

But when Shikamaru suddenly _linked _their fingers together, the hazy images of Gai's blinding but infectious smile, Lee's round, hopeful, _sparkling _orbs, and Neji's stern but caring gray eyes, slowly melted away. And Tenten, instead of being surprised, merely kept on smiling, and squeezed Shikamaru's fingers in return.

_I need to tell you something._

Tenten's eyes snapped open, and she was surprised to find that the sky suddenly turned _oh so gray. _She felt a soft tugging in her heart, and, as if on instinct, she loosened her grip on Shikamaru's hand.

_Oh._

* * *

><p><strong>I'm sorry. I couldn't help it. It's my inner ShikaTen fangirling working double-time to get out. And come on, this is still canon, timeline-wise, at least. Tenten was last seen with Shika's team anyway.<strong>

**/coughs**

**Anyway, thank you for your answers to my last question! If I have to answer my own question, I guess I'd say I enjoyed writing (and reading) "All is Full of Love" the best, because Lee is just so random! And "Sleepwaking," because there's Shikamaru!**

**/ducks pans and pots from raging NejiTen fans**

**Again, thanks to my wonderful reviewers ****shadowofnothing14****, KNO, ****DarkAnonymous324****, ****Wroathe****, Sepsis, ****Crestfallenfeline****, ****PeaceGirlForever**** and****starisice****. I'm about 30 (well, 29) reviews away from reaching a hundred, and it's all thanks to you guys! Keep 'em coming!**

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows.**

**(But I can sneak out some marshmallows for you guys, just because you all rock.)**


	12. Tout Doucement

**Title: Tout Doucement**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji, Lee, Gai, Shikamaru, Chouji, Ino, Sai, mention of Naruto**

**Summary: ****And suddenly she was running, running as fast as her tired, little feet could carry her, but it was as if fate was really playing a cruel joke, because no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get to them fast enough to ease her longing heart.**

* * *

><p><strong>Tout Doucement<strong>

The last few days before the end of the great Shinobi World War, Tenten felt as if someone had accidentally pressed the fast forward button of her life and then forgot to turn it off. Her movements became mechanical, almost robot-like, as she threw kunai after kunai, shuriken after shuriken, to countless Zetsus and other long-dead shinobi called back from the grave.

And then, Naruto, bless his soul, did something stupendously incredible, something so Naruto-like, and all of a sudden, the war was finally over.

Next thing she knew, she was walking back to Konoha, Chouji to her left, Shikamaru to her right, with Ino and Sai following them closely behind. She wasn't sure how Sai ended up with them (wasn't he supposed to be assigned to a different division?) or why Ino would rather walk beside _him _than Shikamaru (he did look like Sasuke, she supposed). But whatever the reason, at least it freed the shadow jutsu user to be her human crutch, because she was currently limping from using up too much chakra _again_ ("You will never stop being troublesome, won't you?").

And she found herself standing in front of the village gates, where clusters of shinobi and kunoichi were waiting for their teammates, their friends, and all of sudden, there they were—two identical bowl cut-haired freaks in green spandex, and one Hyuuga genius without his usual white clothes on. Lee was leaning against Gai, his left leg wrapped in bandages, his leg weights nowhere to be seen. Neji had his back toward her, but she saw the slightest shift in his posture, the faint tenseness of his muscles, and she knew that he knew she had arrived.

And suddenly she was running, running as fast as her tired, little feet could carry her, but it was as if fate was really playing a cruel joke, because no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get to them fast enough to ease her longing heart.

So Neji turned and caught her just as she stumbled and began to fall, and Lee dropped to his knees, unmindful of his broken leg, and Tenten found herself clinging to both of them, her right arm around Neji, her left around Lee, while Gai patted her head affectionately. And she sobbed and sobbed in relief and joy and "I knew it, I knew all of us would survive!" which Lee enthusiastically answered with an "Of course! We are still in the springtime of our youth!" which Gai followed up with a "Yosh! That's the spirit! Let the power of youth explode!" and Tenten, laughing heartily, only clung on to her two friends tighter, if that was even possible.

Lee finally had to let go because his broken leg was giving him hell, and Neji helped Tenten up, but she clung to him still, burying her face in the crook of his neck, as Neji gently held her close, his right arm around her waist, his left hand stroking the loose strands of her otherwise tied-up hair.

"Tenten."

And slowly, she looked up and met Neji's gray orbs, and she watched him smile, _really smile_, and it was as if someone finally pressed Stop, and then Play, and her life ran on a normal, steady pace again.

"Welcome back," he told her gently, the smile never leaving his face.

Tenten eyes brimmed with tears, and she turned around to look at her other companions—Chouji was smiling his usual sincere smile, Ino was squealing while clinging to a genuinely smiling Sai, and Shikamaru was, well, frowning his usual frown and looking far away, probably thinking how troublesome the whole thing was. And Tenten turned to Lee and Gai, who were both smiling those blinding smiles of theirs, and her eyes shifted back to Neji, Neji who was still holding her close, Neji whose smile spoke a million words, Neji who survived, just like he promised. And as the first tear fell from her eyes, Tenten finally breathed out all the tense air she was holding in ever since the start of the war, and she smiled back.

"Yes," she whispered, "It's good to be home."

* * *

><p><strong>A million thanks to my reviewers Sepsis, PeaceGirlForever, DarkAnonymous324, Neji'sGirl185, Lucky Denver Mint, vanelo159 and Chii Saino Kuratsu. Chocolate ice cream for all of you, topped with, yes, you got it, marshmallows! But they're not roasted, because I haven't received any flames yet. Which is cool! Four more chapters to go, and this series will be over. It almost makes me feel, well, sad.<strong>

**/coughs**

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows. And then distributed to the reviewers the next chapter.**


	13. Anthems for a Seventeenyearold Girl

**Title: Anthems for a Seventeen-Year-Old Girl**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji**

**Summary:****"I don't think changing out of your battle clothes will change too much of anything."**

* * *

><p><strong>Anthems for a Seventeen-Year-Old Girl<strong>

She applied another layer of lipstick on, and yet she still felt uglier that she ever did her entire life.

With mascara-stained tears streaming down her face, Tenten regarded herself in the mirror, wondering how it all came to _this._

She had long ago accepted the fact that she can never be as beautiful as Haruno Sakura or as alluring as Yamanaka Ino, and it wasn't really in her nature to be vain. The last time she had even worn proper make-up (although it was only really a smudge of lipstick on her otherwise chapped, dry lips) was during the Finals of the Chunnin Exams, where she watched as Neji and Naruto battled it out, with Naruto emerging as the victor in the end. Not even during social or formal gatherings had Tenten bothered to wear decent make-up, save for the tiniest hint of lip gloss, because she figured that there was no need to cover herself with cosmetics just to make other people appreciate her. She'd much rather have them admire her skills than her looks anyway.

But as she recalled the way her last conversation with Neji had ended, all she could think of was how _ugly _she was.

It was the evening after they got back from the war, and after bringing Lee to the hospital and undergoing the required physical check-up for all shinobi, she and Neji headed home, with Gai opting to stay with Lee, in case the latter needed some company. As they walked the path to her apartment, Neji, who was characteristically quiet just seconds ago, suddenly said, "That thing I needed to tell you. Do you want to hear it now?"

And Tenten stopped dead on her tracks, stared at Neji full in the face, and blinked, her mind drawing a blank for a few seconds. "W-what?"

Neji raised an eyebrow by a fraction of a centimeter, but it was enough for Tenten to regain her senses. "I mean, why now? We just got back and I haven't even changed out of my battle clothes yet!" she blurted out, mentally smacking herself because what in the world was she saying? That was Neji in front of her, for Kami's sake! He had seen her in worse conditions before!

As if reading her mind, Neji's other eyebrow rose, showing that he was amused. "I don't think changing out of your battle clothes will change too much of anything," he said, a slight smirk hiding in the corner of his mouth.

And she'd later blame it to exhaustion, to too much loss of chakra, but Tenten _flared up _when she heard Neji's poor attempt at a joke_._

"Well forgive me for not being pretty enough for _your _standards!" she hissed, and she caught how Neji's amused smirk suddenly disappeared, just before she blitzed away, leaving her friend behind.

The next thing she knew, she was unearthing from her storage room the old make-up kit that Ino had given her for her birthday three years ago, and she was applying them on, one by one—foundation, blush-on, eye shadow, mascara, lipstick and all.

"_I don't think changing out of your battle clothes will change too much of anything_," Tenten mimicked the Byakugan user as she wiped her mascara-stained cheek with her right forearm, effectively spreading the dark tint even more. "Stupid Hyuuga, not everyone can be as beautiful as you, damn it!"

And she finally crumpled down, curled herself on the floor, and sobbed herself silly, because what was she so angry about in the first place? It wasn't as if Neji had directly told her she was ugly. And what did it matter even if he did? Why was she overreacting? She had survived the great Shinobi War without shedding a single tear, and now she felt defeated because of one stupid comment from someone who probably did not even mean to offend her?

_That thing I needed to tell you. Do you want to hear it now?_

"Of course I want to hear it, dummy," Tenten whispered as she lay on the floor, not caring anymore how she looked. _I've wanted to hear it ever since you told me you needed to tell me something._

"Then why don't you just say so?"

Tenten bolted up, and there, sitting on her window sill, was Neji, smiling that soft smile of his that only a few people had the privilege of seeing.

"How long have you been there?" she asked, blinking back teary eyes, lest she was merely hallucinating from too much crying.

The Hyuuga genius hopped down to her bedroom floor and approached her slowly. "Outside your house, about ten seconds after you slammed the front door close. Outside your window, about the time you started painting your lips with that…_thing,_" he said, pointing to the poor lipstick rolling sadly on the cold floor.

"Oh," Tenten answered weakly, and then, suddenly, her eyes widening, "Look away! I look _terrible_!" She covered her face with her palms, hoping that Neji would be kind enough to spare her some of her dignity.

No such luck.

She felt warm hands pulling her hands away from her face, and she found herself staring into Neji's gray orbs, with him looking at her with that same look of amusement he had just an hour past.

"Face paint doesn't suit you," he said simply, and Tenten would have smacked him, except that Neji was currently holding both her wrists, and she didn't have enough energy left to fight him off.

"Not my fault that I can't be as beautiful as the other more attractive kunoichi we have," she whispered, defeated.

Neji released her wrists, and stood up. "True," he said, turning his back against her, and Tenten felt her eyes well up with tears once more. So he really did find her unattractive. Maybe what he was supposed to say back then was nothing of the romantic sort, and she was just creating an illusion, a stupid daydream in her head that _the _Neji Hyuuga would actually look at her even the tiniest fraction of how she looks at him.

Head hung low, she barely heard Neji's next words: "You're beautiful enough for me though."

She snapped her head up, and there was Neji, leaning against her window sill once more, that same soft smile back on his face. "W-what?"

The prodigy shrugged. "I'll tell you what I need to tell you some other time," he said, and when Tenten opened her mouth to protest, Neji merely smiled again and began to exit through the window. And just when Tenten thought that he was already gone, he suddenly popped his head back in, and said, "I don't think changing out of your battle clothes will change too much of anything."

Tenten was ready to go on murder-mode again, but the Hyuuga genius was not yet finished.

"You'll still be beautiful, after all."

* * *

><p><strong>If Neji sounds a little OOC, it's because he's lost too much chakra in the war, and has not yet regained his ice-cube personality.<strong>

**/coughs**

**Anyway, thanks to my faithful and lovely reviewers ****hihimakino****, ****Chii Saino Kuratsu****, ****DarkAnonymous324****, ****vanelo159****, ****Sepsis****, ****paminta, ****Neji'sGirl185****,****Kari-Kateora****, Lucky Denver Mint and ****KNO****. I'm sorry I haven't had the time to reply to you individually, but I promise to try and do it within the next week or so.**

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows.**


	14. Wonders of the Deep

**Title: Wonders of the Deep**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji, Shikamaru**

**Summary: "We're just good friends! Besides," she huffed again, planting her fists on her hips, "even if Shika did like me **_**that way, **_**what can you do about it?"**

* * *

><p><strong>Wonders of the Deep<strong>

Three months after the end of the Great Shinobi War, Tenten and Lee were finally promoted to Jounin level.

The weapons' expert was the last candidate to exit the Hokage's office after the official ceremony, because Tsunade had asked her to stay behind to discuss an upcoming mission—her first mission as a Jounin. Before her private meeting with her lifelong idol, she told Lee to tell Neji and Gai, who were both waiting outside, that they can go on ahead, and she'll catch up with them in a bit.

Half an hour later, Tenten exited the office, and was surprised to find Neji still in the waiting area, alone.

"Neji?" she asked, hurrying up to her friend, who was currently meditating on one of the chairs. The Hyuuga prodigy cracked open his eyes and turned to the direction Tenten was coming from. "Why are you still here? I thought I told you guys to…"

"Congratulations on your appointment," Neji cut her off mid-reprimand, and he stood up and smiled.

"Ah—oh," Tenten blubbered, suddenly flushing. "T-thanks!" she beamed. Then, "But really, you didn't have to wait…"

"I wanted to be the first one to congratulate you when you leave the Hokage's office," came Neji's simple reply, before turning to walk away. Tenten, as if on cue, fell into place with him, and together they exited the tower, Tenten recounting the tests she and Lee had to go through, and even sharing her first mission that the Godaime specifically assigned.

They were just right outside the tower when they spotted Shikamaru, who was sitting on a stone bench and looking up the sky.

"Shika!" Tenten beamed, jogging to the shadow manipulator's side. "Why are you still here?"

The Nara genius turned at the mention of his name, and waited until Tenten reached his side. "The clouds look beautiful here," he answered lazily, standing and dusting off his pants.

"Seriously!" Tenten chuckled, flicking her index finger against Shikamaru's forehead. "You'll never get over that habit of yours, even now that you're a jounin, right?"

The shinobi answered with a _tch, _and Tenten chuckled all the more.

"Well, I'm off," Shikamaru nodded, rubbing the back of his head and looking away. "Congratulations on your appointment, Tenten."

The kunoichi smiled. "Congratulations to you too," she began. "I hope that you won't spend too much time watching clo—"

She suddenly felt strong, warm arms around her, and gasped when she realized that Shikamaru, the lazy shinobi who found everything troublesome, was _hugging _her.

"Ah," she managed to say, stiffening a bit. A few seconds more and she finally relaxed and returned the hug, chuckling. "You really are so unpredictable," she whispered, laughing out loud when Shikamaru answered, "And you're so troublesome," before letting her go.

She waved as her friend walked away, and only then did she remember that Neji was still there, waiting.

"Ah!" she turned, grinning sheepishly at the Byakugan user. "Sorry about that," she said as she went back to his side. "He just congratulated me, that's all."

"He likes you."

A beat.

"Hah?" Tenten blurted out, brown eyes wide as saucers. Then, whacking Neji on the arm, "Don't say stupid things like that!"

But Neji didn't appear to be joking. He merely stared back at his companion, regarding her quietly behind gray-white eyes.

Tenten huffed. "Anyway," she said, starting to walk again, purposefully leaving Neji behind, hoping that he'll take the cue to follow her, "we should hurry, before Lee and Gai-sensei start to…" She paused, realizing that Neji had not moved from his spot. "Aw come on!" Tenten groaned. "We're just good friends! Besides," she huffed again, planting her fists on her hips, "even if Shika did like me _that way, _what can you do about it?"

"Be jealous."

Another beat.

"Ehhhhh?"

Tenten watched as Neji finally moved toward her, step by step, his gray eyes fixed on her confused face. He wasn't blushing, didn't look like he was joking, and if possible, looked more serious than he's ever been before.

"W-what are you…"

"I need to tell you something."

And Tenten paused in mid-question, and realized that she was at a loss for words. So she let Neji continue, and she stood there, unmoving, as the Byakugan user finally, _finally, _told her what he was supposed to say before the war even took place.

"Few shinobi live very long lives."

She blinked. Okay, that was not what she was expecting. But really, what was she _expecting_? If anything, she should have expected that Neji would say the unexpected, rather than the opposite. Still, she remained quiet, willing her teammate to continue.

"But in case I am fated to reach old age," he continued, pausing just long enough to smile at Tenten once more, "I'd very much like to spend the rest of my life with you."

Silence.

Tenten felt her breath hitch up her throat, and for a few seconds her mind blanked out. Did Neji just say what she thought she heard him say? Was it safe to assume that Neji did, in fact, feel the same way for her as she did for him?

She needed to be sure.

"A-as a what?" she asked, and she saw how Neji's forehead creased just the tiniest bit, how his lips curved down by a fraction of a millimeter. Still, she pressed on. "As a friend? A sister? A teammate? A punching bag?" She would have gone on, nervous as she was, but Neji had already closed his eyes, frowned, turned around, and started to walk away.

"N-neji!" she called out, suddenly feeling panicky. Did she take it too far? "Wait!"

The Hyuuga stopped a few feet away, and then turned to face her, his face devoid of all emotion, like it usually was.

"Tenten."

She waited with held breath.

"I'm not the type to kneel down on one knee and offer a ring."

And she felt so happy, so overjoyed, that she did the first thing she could think of—she summoned a kunai and threw it at him, the blade whizzing just a few centimeters away from his cheek.

Neji didn't even blink.

"That. Is. The. Most. Bizarre. Proposal. Ever!" she hissed, not sure if she wanted to hug or strangle the guy in front of her.

It turned out that she didn't have to do either. Neji approached her once again, smiling that impossibly sincere smile of his, and, standing just a foot away from her, he lifted his right hand and touched Tenten's cheek gently.

"Is that a yes?"

And Tenten's eyes teared up in joy, and, chuckling, she threw her arms around Neji, who automatically returned her embrace.

"Yes."

* * *

><p><strong>I really, really enjoyed writing this chapter. It's been on my mind since Sunday, and I had to stop myself from typing it out instead of working on my book projects. But now that it's out, I'm really happy with it. Not only did we finally get to read what Neji had to say to Tenten, but there was also a kind of closure for the ShikaTen angle as well. Which, of course, made me a little sad, but it's not like I can split Tenten into two halves so that both guys can have her, right?<strong>

**Two weeks more and this series will finally be over. But! No need to fret! Because, I have a new list up my sleeve!**

**/coughs**

**A gazillion thanks to my lovely, lovely reviewers ****Chii Saino Kuratsu****, ****DarkAnonymous324****, ****PeaceGirlForever****, ****Neji'sGirl185****, ****Sepsis****, ****MarMarVIII****,****vanelo159****. And to ****Kari-Kateora**** and ****Wroathe**** for dropping a note in my inbox.**** Seriously, I'm going to be so sad when this series is over, because I've grown to love talking to each and every one of you!**

**Reviews will be lovely, and, yes, you know it, flames will be used to roast marshmallows.**


	15. Sprawl II Mountains Beyond Mountains

**Title: Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji, metion of Tsunade and Ino**

**Summary: ****"Maybe I should just invent a last name or something, to spare myself of these incidents."**

* * *

><p><strong>Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)<strong>

It was half past eight in the evening when Neji found her, sitting alone on the riverbank nearest their usual training area. She wasn't even crying; either she was too numb to feel anything anymore, or she just felt it beneath her dignity to cry over something like _that._

Maybe she did learn a few things from spending years training with Neji after all.

"Found me," she said weakly, not really turning to face him, just sitting there silently, watching the stars twinkling from far away.

Neji made no answer, simply sat beside her and gazed at the river straight ahead.

They remained like that for a few minutes.

Finally, like usually was the case, it was Tenten who broke the silence.

"Ino went in my place."

Neji didn't respond, but Tenten knew he was listening. So she continued. "The client met me in the Hokage's office, and Tsunade-sama introduced us." She paused, taking a deep, shaky breath. "Do you know the first thing he asked me?" When Neji still did not respond, Tenten whispered softly, "He asked me, _'What's your kekkei genkai?'_"

She chuckled, a little too bitter for her taste. "I told him I had none, and then Tsunade-sama cut in, saying I was the best weapons specialist in all of Konoha, maybe in the entire Fire Country," she recalled, a faint smile finally gracing her lips.

It quickly disappeared as she continued her tale.

"The client appeared not to hear her though. He then asked me," and Tenten paused again, and it took a few seconds before she could collect herself, "He asked me what clan I'm from."

This time, she saw, from the corner of her eye, how Neji turned his head slightly to her, his face devoid of emotion, except for his eyes, which hinted at a gruesome death to someone very soon.

"I told him I don't know," Tenten continued, turning away, shrugging. "And then, finally, he asked me what my last name is." A long pause. "I told him I don't have one."

Tenten closed her eyes as the scene replayed once again in her mind. The client absolutely refusing to let her be his escort because, as he put it oh so mildly, _She doesn't even have a surname! I will not entrust my life to an unknown, useless kunoichi who doesn't have a kekkei genkai! _At that point, the Godaime suddenly stood, frowning in a way that told Tenten the client was going to receive a beating _very _soon. And so to stop her lifelong idol from tarnishing the reputation of Konoha over _unknown, useless _her, she immediately said, "I understand." And then bowing low to both the client and Tsunade, she continued, "I suggest Yamanaka Ino then. She's not yet a jounin, but she comes from the Yamanaka clan, and her kekkei genkai is famous in all of Konoha." Tsunade looked at her warily, but she offered a small, polite smile back. "It's okay, Godaime-sama," she said. "I'm sure Ino will be able to handle the job just fine." The client appeared happy enough, muttering something like, "At least this one has enough brains to realize her place. Maybe you're not so useless after all." To which Tenten merely bowed politely back again, her fists clenched so tightly to her side it was enough to draw blood.

She sighed as she looked up once again at the stars. It was a beautiful night, but the beauty was lost because of the humiliation she had to go through.

"Oh well," she whispered softly, so softly she wasn't sure that Neji heard. "It's not like it's my fault I grew up an orphan, right?" Still not meeting his eyes (she was aware that he was facing her fully now), she chuckled bitterly, "Maybe I should just invent a last name or something, to spare myself of these incidents."

And just when she was about to laugh at her poor attempt to put humor in a depressing situation, she suddenly felt Neji's hand over hers. Turning around in surprise, she saw Neji looking at her, not smiling, but not angry either.

"You don't have to do that."

Tenten creased her forehead and muttered, "Neji, I was only jo…"

"You don't need one. You're a worthy kunoichi on your own accord, and you don't need a last name to prove that to anyone."

And she stopped, because why had she not thought of that before sulking and getting depressed like that? So what if she didn't have any powerful kekkei genkai, or a clan to be proud of? She was _the_ best weapons specialist in their village, a proud member of Team Gai, the fastest kunoichi in her batch. She doesn't need a name attached to hers to prove her worth.

Smiling, she squeezed Neji's hand and thanked him silently.

But the Hyuuga wasn't finished yet.

Cupping Tenten's head, Neji pulled her toward him, effectively making her rest her head against his shoulder. Tenten shivered pleasantly at the contact, and found herself closing her eyes as Neji held her close.

"Besides," he whispered in her ear, his next words making Tenten's heart _soar, _"in a couple of months, I'll give you mine."

* * *

><p><strong>Hyuuga Tenten. Hmm. It does kind of have a ring in it, right? Right?<strong>

**/coughs**

**Anyway, we've officially come to the second to the last chapter of this series. I think I'm going to suffer from separation anxiety very soon. But before that happens, I will try my very best to finish this series with a bang!**

**/coughs again**

**Anyway, I am so overwhelmed with your responses for last chapter! I must have done something right, I guess? I hope? Seriously, the reviews just kept on coming, and I almost teared up from all the wonderful messages I received from you guys! You guys seriously rock! Many, many, MANY thanks to you all: ****Chii Saino Kuratsu****, ****Crestfallenfeline****, Lulu, Nejitenfureva, ****DarkAnonymous324****, ****PeaceGirlForever****, ****Birdbwainzxd, ****Neji'sGirl185****,****Milene, ****Sepsis****, ****Blood-Gaara-Blood****, KNO, ****Eternal Cat Moon****, and ****Artistyello****. And special mention to ****Vanilla Vader****, for reviewing all chapters in one (or two) sitting! Gosh, you guys, you make a writer so happy!**

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast gigantic marshmallows that will be served during Neji and Tenten's wedding! (No! This is not a spoiler!)**


	16. The Spirit of Giving

**Title: The Spirit of Giving**

**Characters: Tenten, Neji**

**Summary: And Neji _smiled_ and stood up, and walked to her slowly, deliberately, and all Tenten could do was wait, because, she realized only at that very moment, she had been waiting for him all her life.**

* * *

><p><strong>The Spirit of Giving<strong>

Ten days before the wedding, Tenten found herself throwing kunai after kunai at her favorite target board, Neji's head resting a few inches below the bull's eye. It had become such a routine for both of them—Tenten practicing weapon throwing, Neji meditating—that she could no longer imagine a time when they had not done it. She loved the fact that Neji trusted her with his life, enough to let her continue throwing weapons above his head.

"I'm glad we were able to take a breather from all of _that,_" Tenten said, conversationally, knowing that despite his meditative appearance, Neji was listening to her. "I swear, Lee and Gai-sensei are more excited about this whole _thing_ than I am!" She expertly threw another kunai toward the board, its pointy end hitting the surface about two inches from Neji's left ear.

Without opening his eyes, Neji answered, "Are you saying you're not excited about it?" His voice was a calm monotone, but Tenten knew he was being playful, and cautious at the same time. She chuckled and threw another kunai.

"What? Having to suffer your company 24/7? I dread the day," she laughed, twirling a kunai expertly around her index finger.

Neji popped open an eye.

Tenten chuckled all the more, throwing the kunai to the ground this time. "What?" she kidded.

Neji opened both eyes. "If you don't…" he started, but Tenten cut him off.

"Oh no you don't, Hyuuga. You are not backing out from that proposal now," she said, planting her fists on her hips and faking a pout. "I'm not letting you make me the laughing stock of the entire village." And before Neji could utter a protest, she continued, her pout softening to a smile, "Besides, marrying you?" A pause. "Positively a dream come true."

And Tenten watched as Neji's blank face mellowed down a bit, a small corner of his lip inching upward, so small that no one else would notice.

But Tenten knew him long enough to know that he was overflowing with joy inside.

"Oh learn how to smile properly, will you?" she chuckled, throwing another kunai at the board above him.

She practiced for a couple more minutes, Neji no longer meditating, but watching her with eyes open.

Finally, "Tenten."

"Hm?" she hummed, doing a summersault before throwing three senbons simultaneously.

"Thank you."

She paused in mid-throw, hand holding a shuriken this time. "For what?" she asked, genuinely confused.

"For loving me."

And she watched as Neji sat there—her teammate, sparring partner, comrade, best friend, the boy who grew up without a father, who learned forgiveness the hard way, who fought his way to be the kind of person that he was right now—looking at her, his eyes filled with so much love and happiness.

Dropping the shuriken on the ground, she smiled softly, her eyes filled with warmth reserved especially for him. "What's not to love?"

And Neji _smiled_ and stood up, and walked to her slowly, deliberately, and all Tenten could do was wait, because, she realized only at that very moment, she had been waiting for him all her life.

Neji touched her cheek, fingers light as a feather, his eyes filled with so much love that he probably will _never _be able to voice out.

"Tenten," he started, and then paused, and then started again. "I…" Another pause, and Tenten shook her head, and smiled warmly, and took his other hand and placed it on her chest. "You don't have to say it, silly," she answered. "I can feel it _here._"

Neji smiled _wider_, and after another beat, "I'm going to kiss you right now," and then, creasing his forehead just a fraction of a millimeter, "Don't you dare stop me."

And Tenten laughed, because, after all they've been through, why was he doubting himself _now_?

Wrapping her arms around him, she grinned and answered, "Who's stopping who?"

And they looked into each other's eyes—the kunochi from an unnamed clan and the genius from one of the most powerful clans in the world; two people who spent their entire lives searching for love, only to find it with each other; comrades, best friends, lovers—and the bond between them just seemed to grow all the more.

Finally, "Oh just kiss me, you."

And so kiss her he did.

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><p><strong>It's finished! It's actually, finally finished! I don't know whether to cry or laugh or go crazy over it. I don't think I've ever felt this happy and sad over the ending of any story I've written before! Okay, okay, I need to collect myself for a bit.<strong>

**/inhales deeply**

**Again, thank you so much for all those who reviewed: KNO, Chii Saino Kuratsu, Neji'sGirl185, DarkAnonymous324, Sepsis, Crestfallenfeline, Vanilla Vader, PeaceGirlForever, vanelo159, Nejitenfureva, and XxBloodsbanexX. I seriously don't know what I'm going to do without your words of encouragement and what-not. Gosh, 136 reviews all in all, excluding this chapter! You guys make a writer so happy!**

**/sobs**

**Well, I guess this is it for now? Parting's such sweet sorrow…but never fear! After a couple of weeks on break, I promise to return with a new series! I hope you'll all watch out for that! In the meantime…**

**/clears throat**

**…for the last time, reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows!**


	17. Hidden Chapter 1: Sleepwaking

**Title: Hidden Chapter #1: Sleepwaking**

**Characters: Shikamaru, Tenten, Neji**

**Summary: **He just realized three important things in the span of less than five minutes—that the Hyuuga does know how to get jealous, and that for all her wit, Tenten was pretty oblivious. That, and he _might _have just come to appreciate her a little more, for reasons he wouldn't be caught dead saying aloud.****

**A/N: The first of the hidden chapters for _Beginnings. _****This one is from Shikamaru's point of view.**

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><p><strong>Hidden Chapter #1: Sleepwaking<strong>

"Do you count sheep backward to fall asleep?"

He should have seen it coming. He was supposed to be a genius after all, the smartest in his age group. Still, it amused him how _she _could be so unpredictable at times.

He _tched. _"No. Too troublesome."

And it was. In his mind, he reasoned that counting sheep backward would in fact not help him fall asleep, because he'd be too preoccupied making sure he did not miss a single number. That, and counting backward required too much brain cells, and he did not feel like wasting any on them on those four-legged bags of wool.

"Typical," she answered, and Shikamaru could swear she was grinning from ear to ear, even when he had his eyes closed. It amused him a little to realize that he had grown so accustomed to her presence that he could correctly guess her facial expression just by the sound of her voice.

"Tch." _Women are so troublesome._

"Ah, that one looks like a pineapple," he heard her say, chuckling a little. "No, scratch that," she continued, after a short pause. "It actually looks more like your head, Shika!"

Shikamaru groaned. Not for the first time that day, he wondered why he had even bothered telling her that he planned to go cloud-watching near the riverbank that afternoon. He should have known she would convince him to let her join him, or at least blackmail him with something utterly ridiculous but very effective. Still, a small part of him _wanted _her to be there (he did not wish to dwell on that part yet), so he didn't object to her self-invitation.

He was dangerously realizing that he liked her company more than he cared to admit.

When he felt that she had quieted down, Shikamaru risked opening half an eyelid to sneak a peek at her. About an arm length's away, lying comfortably on the grass beside him, with her eyes closed and a soft, dreamy smile on her face, the chunnin genius studied Team Gai's weapons specialist, Tenten.

She was clad in her usual training attire, nothing too revealing or fancy, unlike his teammate Ino (for the life of him, he still could not figure out why the Yamanaka daughter had to dress in such revealing clothes, even during trainings). Her hair in her signature twin buns, her face without a hint of makeup, Shikamaru found Tenten pretty, _beautiful, _even, in her simplicity.

He had stopped trying to figure out how they became close. It was too troublesome to get into the details anyway. All he knew was she had to replace Ino last-minute in a crack mission his team was assigned in, and when they had come back to the village, he found out that she had grown on him, or him on her. Even Chouji took a liking on Tenten, although most of the time, he'd invite her to _yakiniku _rather than cloud-watching.

Shikamaru suddenly realized that he had both his eyes open, observing the silently sleeping kunoichi. She looked so peaceful, so innocent, as if her hands had not been dirtied with dry blood from all the training she had taken under the direction of Maito Gai, as if she had not made her first kill yet (which he knew she has, she had told him that in passing while they were on their way back from the mission), as if she was a _normal _girl who was not troublesome at all.

And he found himself smiling just a little wider, and, moving a little closer to Tenten's sleeping form, Shikamaru closed his eyes and dozed off.

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><p>He was woken up by small stone hitting him squarely on the chest. Shikamaru blinked open sleepy eyes and turned to the obvious source of the stone. "What was that for?"<p>

He didn't expect the Hyuuga protégé to be there.

"I told you to remind me that I have a sparring session with Neji at four!"

He sat up lazily, scratching his head. "But you looked so peaceful, sleeping like that." That, and he completely forgot about reminding her. It was too troublesome to remember things like that, especially when there were other more important things to think about—like how it felt right to be lying next to her as he lazily watched the clouds.

Shikamaru contemplated on explaining further when an icy, annoyed voice cut through his thoughts. "Why are you with _him_?"

He suddenly felt irked, for some reason. As far as he knew, Tenten and Neji were not involved in any romantic relationship, so technically, Neji had no say as to who the kunoichi hung around with. Sure, he had a hunch that the Hyuuga harbored feelings for the weapons specialist, and maybe Tenten reciprocated the feeling too (now _that _soured his mood for some weird reason), but so long as nothing was official, Neji should not speak in _that _tone.

"I didn't know I had to consult with you my choice of friends."

Shikamaru almost nodded in agreement, had Neji not answered, his voice growing colder, if that was at all possible. "You don't."

Tenten _growled. _"Could have fooled me."

Shikamaru, for all his admiration for Team Gai's weapons' specialist, did _not _want to get in the way of a fight between the two older ninjas. He had seen them spar before; it wasn't pretty, and it would be too troublesome to dodge all of Tenten's weapons, or avoid Neji's Gentle Fist. He was about to excuse himself when Neji spoke, "I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Excuse me?" The shock in Tenten's answer was undeniable. Shikamaru was surprised as well. He had always thought that Neji was as stubborn as a block, but apparently, the Byakugan-user had backed off without putting up much of a fight.

_Interesting._

"Since you're too _busy_ watching the clouds to come to our session today, I'll just see you tomorrow." There it was, that _something _in his voice that Shikamaru did not miss. It was as if Neji wanted to say something else, but being the stuck-up, stoic person that he was, he couldn't bring himself to do it.

Shikamaru _almost _grinned. (He didn't, of course, because the Hyuuga was still looking at them, and he didn't want to risk a confrontation.)

"What are you…" but before Tenten could even finish her sentence, Neji already walked off, leaving her and Shikamaru alone. "That arrogant piece of…argh!" she hissed, turning to Shikamaru and glaring at _him._"What are you looking at?" she demanded.

Shikamaru could tell her that he was looking at her because he had just realized three important things in the span of less than five minutes—that the Hyuuga does know how to get jealous, and that for all her wit, Tenten was pretty oblivious. That, and he _might_ have just come to appreciate her a little more, for reasons he wouldn't be caught dead saying aloud.

But being the genius that he was, Shikamaru merely shrugged and lied down again.

"Troublesome."

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><p><strong>Yes! Your eyes are not deceiving you! I've decided to continue with this series! Well, sort of. I'll be writing hidden chapters for some of the prompts, like, POVs from the other characters. I'm not promising to write one for everything, but I'll write whenever I feel inspired to do so.<strong>

**Some of you might have recognized this first hidden chapter; yes, this is "The Lost Things." I wanted to include it in the roster, since technically, this is my first hidden chapter of the series. I'm adding another hidden chapter right now, after this. So don't forget to turn to the next page and read your hearts out XD**

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows.**


	18. Hidden Chapter 2: Empire Ants

**Title: Hidden Chapter #2: Empire Ants**

**Characters: Lee, Neji, Tenten**

**Summary: ****"I'm sorry, Neji," Lee finished, all melodrama from his voice already gone. "It was my fault. I failed to protect Tenten the way you used to."**

**A/N: Second hidden chapter of the series. This one is from Lee's POV.**

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><p><strong>Hidden Chapter #2: Empire Ants<strong>

He sprang out of bed, enthusiastic as ever, although his jump lacked its usual beat. It was, after all, the morning after their last mission—his and Tenten's—and although it was successful, it felt like a failure still.

Because Tenten had killed someone.

And he had failed to stop her from doing so.

Because of this, Lee promised to punish himself by running laps around the village a hundred times that day. And if he failed, he would do five hundred pushups, using only his thumbs and index fingers. And even then, that might not be enough punishment for his failure to look after his friend, to keep the promise he made to his _other _friend.

"_Don't worry about it, Neji. I'll be sure to keep an eye on Tenten while you're gone!"_

He had been so sure of himself, so certain of his conviction to take care of their youthful flower while his eternal rival was on a solo mission, that he immediately accepted the mission that the Godaime had given them without considering Tenten's feelings in the least. If he had, he would have remembered that Tenten was generally wary of seduction missions, even when they were still working as a team—him and her and Neji and the ever-reliable Gai-sensei. It was only because they made it a rule that Tenten had to be in the range of Neji's byakugan whenever she engaged a client that she even still agreed to accept missions like that, ever since the incident of the first one.

Neither Neji or Tenten told him nor Gai-sensei what had actually transpired during that first seduction mission. But when they found them a couple of minutes after Tenten's shriek (they had to knock down the mark's bodyguards, after all), Tenten was clinging tightly onto Neji's jacket, and the Hyuuga was holding her shoulders in an almost possessive manner, and would not let either Lee or Gai-sensei escort her back to her home that night.

Slipping into his favorite green spandex (which he almost always wore, even during his off days), he quickly left his flat, determined to start with his punishment early, and then check on his teammate and friend after.

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><p>He was on his eighty-seventh lap when he spotted Neji come out of the Hokage tower. His first instinct was to run <em>away <em>from the Hyuuga, but then realized that Neji deserved to hear what happened, and he deserved to be glared at (and maybe jyuken-ed) for his failure to protect Tenten.

So he ran toward him and called Neji's name. The byakugan user stopped and turned around, and waited for his friend. Only when Lee saw how tired Neji looked did he have second thoughts of confessing his crime there and then.

"What is it?" came Neji's monotone, and Lee suddenly felt the need to _flee._

But he was a man, a youthful one at that, damn it, and he will face whatever consequences his past actions will have.

"How did your mission in Suna go?"

Neji nodded. "Longer than expected," he answered, forehead creasing a little. "How did _your _mission go?"

Lee gulped. Why was Neji's tone more hurried than usual? Was his guilt that obvious? Was it written all over his face? Neji hadn't even activated his byakugan yet. How could he have known?

"Lee." Lee gulped again. "Where's Tenten?"

"Our youthful flower is currently resting in her apartment," Lee answered. He had made sure of it; he dropped by her place earlier to check on her, and her door was locked, all her traps set in place, so he was certain she was inside. He didn't want to intrude; he knew how Tenten was after seduction missions, and he respected her enough to let her be by herself if she wanted to.

Neji's frown deepened. "What _happened?_"

And Lee suddenly teared up, and started spouting a litany of apologies while sniffling and sobbing and Neji had to smack him in the middle of his forehead to make him stop.

"What _happened, _Lee?"

And there was such worry in Neji's voice that Lee suddenly stopped, looked at his teammate closely, and noticed for the first time how panicked the Hyuuga seemed. Taking a deep breath, Lee began to tell Neji all that happened—how he heard Tenten's scream and then had to fight his way through hordes and hordes of armed bodyguards twice his size, how he reached the masters' bedroom too late, because Tenten was already stabbing their mark repeatedly in the face, how mechanical her movements had become, as if she was stabbing a puppet and not a man.

"I'm sorry, Neji," Lee finished, all melodrama from his voice already gone. "It was my fault. I failed to protect Tenten the way you used to."

Neji was silent the whole time, his eyes shadowed by his hair, but when Lee apologized, Neji looked up, shook his head and answered, "It's nobody's fault."

And just when Lee was about to say how cool and youthful his rival was, Neji turned around and, quick as a snap of a finger, disappeared.

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><p>It took Lee a couple of seconds to catch up with the Hyuuga.<p>

He found him standing outside Tenten's door, fist poised to knock, but Lee could tell from where he was standing that Neji was hesitating to do so.

He was about to reveal himself when Neji _did_ knock, and then Lee had to hide himself behind a pole to avoid being seen. It took Neji about twenty knocks before Tenten appeared, and when she did appear, she looked so terrible that Lee's heart _broke _at the sight of her.

He realized that three hundred laps around Konoha and a thousand pushups were not enough punishment for making Tenten feel _that_ way.

He watched as Neji entered Tenten's little apartment, and then closed the door behind him. It wasn't in his nature to eavesdrop, but something told him he needed to hear what they would talk about. So as quietly as he could (which took a lot of effort, considering how noisy he could be), he tiptoed around the apartment, and positioned himself near a window.

"Lee didn't…?" he heard Tenten say, and he feared for his life all of a sudden.

"He did."

There it was again, that sound of worry in their otherwise emotionless teammate.

"You didn't have to check on me," Lee heard the kunoichi continue, "I'll get over it. I always do." And Lee's admiration for his friend just went a notch higher, maybe ever five notches more, because with everything she had recently gone through, how could she still hold herself together like that?

"Tenten."

Neji's voice sounded tired and thoughtful at the same time. Lee risked a peek. He saw Tenten hunched on the sofa, head hung low, as if the weight of the world was literally on her shoulders. Neji was sitting a hand's width away, and Lee would have thought something was going on between them, had he not been so surprised with Neji's next words.

"I am sure that after that mission, you are still," Neji started, then paused, as if straining to say his next words, "as Gai and Lee would say," and as Tenten looked up, Lee pressed his nose against the window just in time to see Neji clench his teeth, "…youthful."

And Tenten suddenly started laughing, laughing and crying at the same time, and as Neji placed a hand on her shoulder, Lee found his tears were streaming down his eyes too.

Maybe he could be forgiven for his failure to protect someone important to him.

_Gai-sensei, I promise to work triple hard, so that Tenten will not have to go through that ever again._

"Yes," Tenten whispered, and as Neji cracked a small smile, Lee grinned his usual blinding grin as well. "Youthful indeed."

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><p><strong>I really enjoyed writing this chapter. I loved Lee's resolution in the end, about forgiveness and working harder. What I admire most about his character is his loyalty to his friends, and his desire to protect those important to him, even if it costs him his life.<strong>

**Reviews will be lovely, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows.**


	19. Hidden Chapter 3: Seven Years

**Title: Hidden Chapter #3: Seven Years**

**Characters: Kiba, Neji**

**Summary: It was too bad Akamaru was banned from the premises. He might need backup for this one.**

**A/N: Third hidden chapter of the series. This is from Kiba's POV.**

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><p><strong>Hidden Chapter #3: Seven Years<strong>

Inuzuka Kiba whistled a happy tune as he headed toward the men's room, clearly pleased with himself.

After all, the party was nowhere near over, and he had already scored dances with five different women—kunoichi and civilians alike. And they had been lookers too—from the sexy and sultry kunoichi of Team Ten, Yamanaka Ino, to that quiet but attractive attendant in the supplies shop he frequented to these days.

And of course there was his teammate—shy, gentle Hinata, pretty as a lilac, fragile as china. Kiba grinned as he recalled the way the young Hyuuga had fit nicely in his arms when they danced the waltz, how the heiress had blushed beet red when Naruto _accidentally _bumped into them while dancing with Sakura, and then proceeded to compliment Hinata like they didn't have separate dance partners, that _idiot_.

The Inuzuka shook his head and chuckled. If he didn't see Hinata as a younger sister—and if he didn't care about getting on Naruto's bad side—he would have pursued the Hyuuga a long time ago. But like Shino, though to a lesser degree, Kiba felt protective of the heiress not because of any romantic feelings, but because that's what teammates do for each other.

But hot damn, even Kiba would not deny how Hinata's, ehem, assets had improved over the years.

Shaking his head to clear the lewd thoughts beginning to creep into his head about his innocent teammate, Kiba then felt his lips slipping into a wolfish grin as his thoughts began to shift to the last person he had danced with. His sensitive nose had picked up the scent of metal and cinnamon when he held her close during a slow song, and he'd swear the combination would smell horribly on anyone else, but somehow it fit her just right.

She was, after all, Team Gai's weapons' mistress—both sensuous and lethal, alluring and dangerous. And she looked super hot that evening.

So hot, that Kiba had risked getting mutilated by her hot-tempered teammate to ask her for a dance. Anyway, as far as he could tell, there was nothing romantic going on between the two—Hyuuga Neji was asexual at best and gay at worst. But like himself and Shino, Kiba wouldn't put it past the prodigy to be protective of his female teammate, and really, with the way Tenten wore that dress over her perfectly sculpted body, the dog-lover didn't really blame Neji for it.

Who knew the weapons' mistress had that many curves?

Kiba grinned as he began to imagine different covered parts of the kunoichi's body, and what they would look like without any clothes on. Maybe he could interest Tenten to a private training session or two? She seemed like a lively young woman, and false modesty aside, he was a rather attractive young man. Surely there was nothing wrong with . . .

The Inuzuka's train of thought faded out as the hair at the back of his neck suddenly stood in attention. A dark and deadly aura flooded his senses, and his animal instinct—that of the battle kind—went overdrive, causing him to go on automatic defense stance. He didn't know how an enemy nin could get in past the tight security of the place, but he was not about to give it a chance to explain, at least not before he could kick his ass.

Kiba waited with bated breath as the source of negative energy appeared from the corner behind him, and the blood quickly drained down his face. Now he suddenly wished it was a rogue nin stalking him instead. Or anyone, really.

Anyone, other than Hyuuga Neji. Especially a homicidal-looking Hyuuga Neji.

It was too bad Akamaru was banned from the premises. He might need backup for this one.

Kiba was not sure what the proper greeting should be—he was feeling very tongue-tied at the moment anyway—so he kept quiet and waited for his pending doom instead.

But Neji walked very calmly toward him, and then past him, that Kiba thought he was overthinking things. Maybe the Hyuuga just urgently needed to go to the bathroom?

Before he could let his fears completely die down though, he heard the prodigy's voice from a few feet away. And it was enough for him to whimper like a little puppy, pun not intended.

"I strongly warn you against having any indecent thoughts about my teammate."

And then Neji was gone, leaving Kiba alone in the hallway, with his proverbial tail in between his legs.

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><p><strong>I'm sorry. I know I'm supposed to update <strong>_**Hikikomori no Jinsei, **_**but this story begged itself to be written. I know it's been three years since I last wrote anything for this series, so the writing style is pretty different, but, well, here you go.**

**HnJ upate will be up, err, first week of June at the latest? Girl scout's honor (or something).**

**In the meantime, reviews?**


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